The Gardenia Tournament
by Akktri
Summary: About the Pokemon trainer Kyisha and her quest to win the Pelican Tournament in the land of Gardenia.
1. Chapter 1: Coronya Air

Coronya Airlines Number 475 flew through a cloud bank. The silver jumbo tilted slightly, passing over puffy bumps and ridges formed by thousands of tiny water droplets.

It was an evening flight, but the destination didn't seem to be a popular one. A great deal of seats on the 747 were empty, the drink tables folded up, the mini computers shut down, the magazines undisturbed.

A few seats were occupied. A kid with spiky orange hair could just barely be seen in first class, drinking a soda while reading a magazine. A Japanese businessman sat across from him, sound asleep. Back in coach, near the front of the compartment, a fat woman with a polka dot dress was feeding Cheerios to her baby. A little girl with pigtails sat next to the woman, clutching a giant blue stuffed dog. A lanky Texan with a wide brim hat sat in the row behind her, picking his teeth.

Across the aisle was a giant panda. It was so monstrous that it occupied two seats. It hunched over a magazine, squinting at it as it turned the pages with its immense fingers. Behind it sat a dark looking man in a loincloth with a bone through his nose. A four foot gray cat in a leather jacket and orange sunglasses sat next to him.

A red haired girl in a blue shirt sat in the rear, next to the bathrooms. She rubbed her clammy hands on her jeans, staring at the strange passengers. The man with the bone in his nose stared back at her with a vacant, unpleasant expression.

The cat smiled. It hopped down from the chair, padding over to a seat next to the girl in the blue shirt.

It sat down, smiling at her. "Hi!"

He pointed to his sunglasses. "How do you like my shades? I bought them online from Harley Nook's. They're from the movie, Pillowfight Club. The exact same ones that Jack Fluoride wore on the airplane. Aren't they cool? Of course they're cool, aren't they? I mean, Jack Fluoride wore them, so they've gotta be cool, right? Well, anyways, I'm going to Gardenia for the Pelican Tournament. I hear they've got Pokemon trainers coming from all over the world! Isn't that cool? At least I think it's cool. Anyways, that's where I'm going. I've got front row seats! I'm gonna sit up there, behind the glass, and watch every exciting battle from start to finish! I don't think I'm even going to sleep!"

He took a deep breath. "Well, goodness me! I'm doing all the talking! I didn't even ask you your name!" He offered his paw. "My name is Tangy. What's your name?"

"Kyisha Kyagu."

"HA HA HA!" Little bubbles popped up in the air around the cat's head. "That's a funny name!"

Kyisha just stared at him.

Tangy winced. With a sheepish grin, he said, "Of course, it's a great name! I would have picked it myself! In fact, I once had a cousin with that same name!"

Kyisha rolled her eyes.

"So...ah, Kyisha...where are you going? You're going to the Pokemon tournament, aren't you? Ah, I can see it in your eyes. As a matter of fact, I noticed you checking in some Pokeballs at the airport earlier. What kind of food do you normally feed your Pokemon?"

"I usually feed my Pokemon the food I make them," said Kyisha. "Because I can cook good enough so they like the food I give them."

Tangy's mouth fell open, his eyes becoming quite large. "Wow! You're a cook? That's awesome! Maybe you can enter the Poke-Foods Competition going on during the tournament!" He grinned. "Good for you! It's a really good thing that you cook the food. I hear there's at least a hundred and fifty brands of Pokemon food that have been recalled due to poisoning issues. You really lucked out there." He paused. "So you cook, huh? Did you hear about Fufu's Master Chef Competition? People from all over are coming to Gardenia to register for it."

"No, I didn't hear about it." _Sheesh,_ Kyisha thought. _This cat has verbal diarrhea!_

"I think you should enter. It would be a great experience, seeing all the people, taking in all the sights and smells..." Tangy took a deep sniff, as if breathing in the aroma of something. "I can taste all the great food right now." He stared at the seat in front of him. "It's lonely on these flights. I often sit by myself or next to some stranger. It makes me uncomfortable a lot of times, so I often bring along a book." He looked at her again. "I sure like stories about talking animals, don't you?"

"Kinda," Kyisha replied.

"That's good. So do I." He buckled himself in the chair, then reached into a pocket on the seat, taking out a pair of earphones. "You know what? Gardenia has a great radio station. I like to stay up late at night and listen to Phantasmo's Zone of the Unknown. I just love that program. Ohhh, but it's creepy!" Tangy shivered. "Sometimes I have to wrap blankets around myself extra tight and sleep with the lights on after I listen to him!" He paused. "I think it would be great to work at a radio station just like Phantasmo, though. All you have to do is sit in front of a microphone and talk and they pay you for it! Isn't that a great idea?"

"Kinda," said Kyisha.

"Well I think so, too. One of these days, I'm going to send them an application."

"And, by the way," she said faintly, "Yes, I am going to this tournament."

Tangy nodded. "Cool." He put the headphones on, listening to a program for a little while.

"This is the captain speaking," said a voice on the intercom. "The air is going to get a bit rough for a few minutes. Please keep your seat belt fastened."

The cabin shook a little, but it wasn't anything frightening.

The cat turned to look at her again. "I have a Legend of Zelda cartridge in my suitcase. I love fantasy games. Do you like fantasy or quest games?"

"I like both fantasy and quest games but I don't get time to play them anymore because I'm usually traveling," said Kyisha.

"That's cool," said Tangy. "I'm usually traveling myself, but I have lots of portable games so I never miss any of the exciting action! What about scifi? I mean, Space Battle 3 just came out. I think it's a great movie, but not as good as part 6. It's a shame that Richard Schmelton released the first three movies after he made..." Tangy began sweating. "I mean, you know what I mean, right? He made three movies, then he released three prequels that were actually the first three, and...oh!" Tangy rubbed his head. "It makes my head hurt just trying to figure that one out!" He grinned. "But I really love those movies! All of them!...What did you think about them?...Oh, I bet you don't even like science fiction."

"I like science fiction but, I've never heard of Space Battle 3," said Kyisha.

"I can't believe you've never heard of Space Battle. It's only the most famous science fiction movie of the twentieth century!" He shrugged. "If we meet again after this ride is over, remind me to take you to see it. It's a great movie. I've seen it ten times already." The cat took out a small silver box, typing something into it.

Kyisha stared at him.

"This is a BXP. Do you know what that is?" Seeing Kyisha's blank expression, he said, "It's a Barcode X Portable. With the BXP, I can get all sorts of cool items. And I never know what they will be! One time I scanned in a bag of Iams dog food and got a skull shirt in the mail. Isn't that wild?"

"Yeah, it is kinda wild," said Kyisha.

He glanced at her. "I don't think you understand how cool a BXP is. You can just take any old item that's laying around in your OOC house and type in its serial number and you can get a free item inside the game! You don't have to buy a thing!" He looked back and forth, to make sure nobody was listening. "But, of course, you have to actually have the item you're typing in. I mean, if everybody just typed in random numbers and asked for a prize, then nobody would know what the real item was that they used to receive their bonus item!" He frowned. "Sorry, I just get annoyed about people who try to power game when they don't even know what a game is about in the first place. But anyways, I have a BXP right here! Would you like to try it out and see what free item you can get?"

"No thank you."

Tangy's jaw dropped. "Are you serious? You can really nab some sweet prizes with this thing!"

Kyisha nodded.

Tangy frowned. "Oh, c'mon. You haven't even tried it yet! Here. Let me give you a little demonstration. You won't even have to lift a finger." He pushed some buttons on the device. "In RL, the Game Master has an empty container of Gatorade Frost. The serial number is 052000336528. I'll just type the number in, and..." He pushed the button. "Okay, now you have a special item waiting for you at the airport. I hope it's something good!" He grinned.

"Have you ever been to Nook's Casino?

"No, I haven't."

"It's a really great place. They've got all sorts of games, an arcade, a buffet and everything! It's awesome. I go there every chance I get. What about you? Do you like to gamble any?"

"Have you ever been to Nook's Casino?" said Tangy.

"No, I haven't."

"It's a really great place. They've got all sorts of games, an arcade, a buffet and everything! It's awesome. I go there every chance I get. What about you? Do you like to gamble any?"

"I'm not really interested in casinos...I don't gamble either..." Kyisha said.

"Oh. I bet it's for religious reasons, right?" He grinned. "That's okay. There are some churches there, too. Why, there's even chapel right on the corner of the Pokemon center!" Noticing Kyisha's expression, he frowned. "I'm talking too much, aren't I? I am talking too much, right? I'm sorry."

"No problem." she said happily.

Kyisha opened a red sphere from one of her carry-on bags.

With a sudden flash of light, a Mightyena, a strange husky-like canine appeared next to Kyisha.

"Hey, Rain."

The Pokemon put its front paws on her lap and she started to pet him. He happily enjoyed this.

Tangy's mouth fell open. "Hey! Where'd that thing come from? Did you just pull that out of another dimension or something?"

"No, it was one of my Pokeballs," said Kyisha.

"Oh." Tangy frowned. "You really scared me. Next time, warn me before you do something like that." Tangy took out a piece of gum and began chewing it. He offered it to Kyisha. "Gum?"

"What flavor is it?"

"Tuna."

"Yuck. No thanks." The plane tilted downwards, dropping through the clouds. The forests and farms and cities grew larger and larger in size. Kyisha's ears popped.

There was a bump as the plane's landing gears settled down on the runway. The cabin shook. The passengers were subjected to a series of rolling bumps, then the plane slowed. Outside the window, one could see airplanes, mobile staircases, and baggage cars.

About ten minutes later, they stopped.

A voice came on the intercom. "This is the captain speaking. We are now at GIA. You may safely unfasten your seat restraints and proceed to the front of the plane. Please make sure to take all children, purses, carry-on luggage and other items with you as you exit the plane. And thank you, once again, for flying with Coronya Air."

In the next few minutes, passengers began crowding into the aisles with their bags and personal items. Tangy scampered over to his original seat, digging a bright yellow bag out from under the chair. He went up to Kyisha, waving to her. "It's been nice meeting you, Kyisha. If we're lucky, we might even meet again sometime. Of course, normally when you meet people on a plane, you never see them again." He shrugged. "But I'm going to buy you a cool gift, just in case we meet again. I hope you can find me." With that, he scampered down the carpet and out the exit. He was gone before she could ask where to get the free bar code item he'd ordered for her. Kyisha took her bag out from under the seat, checking its contents.

The bag contained special revitalizing potions for her Pokemon, Pokemon vitamin supplements, a Pokestyler, as well as fifty dollars in traveler's checks, and fifty American dollars.

She had a Mightyena and a Bayleef's Pokeballs in there, but nothing else would fit. A lot of the items were in her suitcase. She had a baggage claim ticket in her pocket, so that was okay.

Kyisha grabbed her things and walked out of the plane. She walked past the ticket desk and looked around.

She was at Terminal 17-B Gardenia International Airport, Gate 33C. The terminal was swarming with people and bizarre creatures of all shapes and sizes. Some rode on wheelchairs, power wheelchairs, or trams. There were people with babies in strollers. A row of shops lay across the hallway from the gate. From her current position, she could see Nook's Boutique, a Garbucks, LeClass, Kirk's, MacDunkles, Lemon's, some restrooms, and a huge hallway. There were televisions and vending machines all over the place. A lot of the televisions were showing GNBC, a cable news station, but there were a few showing other stations. There were telephones, internet computers and wireless hotspots, bar code machines, soda machines, vending machines, a Pokemon kiosk, and lots of hard plastic chairs full of strangers.

Tangy sat in one of the chairs. He had a pair of headphones over his ears, and a goofy grin on his face. He tapped his toes and wagged his tail to whatever he was listening to. A group of animals stood near an escalator, passing out fliers. Their shirts read CFM.

A massive crowd had gathered at one end of the hallway. Kyisha couldn't see much of what was going on from her vantage point, but she saw steam coming up, and there was a banner above their heads reading `Poke-Foods Cooking Demo.'

There was a scream. Kyisha looked up. It was difficult to tell if the scream came from the program on GNBC or from somewhere in the airport.

A voice, sounding like a baseball announcer, began speaking on a loud intercom. "Um...it's not a very good idea for you to, like, accept strange gifts at airports, unless they come with the official Gardenia Bar Code. If a stranger asks you to hold their briefcase or something, um, I don't think you should take it, or something, because it might have a bomb inside. But if you are lucky enough to get something with an official Gardenia Bar Code, or something, it might be okay (I guess). Just don't let any terrist, ter, um, those bad guys, give you anything, okay?"

Kyisha went outside, wandering down a street, trying to figure out where to go.

Kyisha paused for a moment and thought for a second. "Oh, shoot! My bags! I almost forgot!" she said to herself, running back to the airport. She went in and went to the baggage line. A sky blue bag was bumping along the conveyor below the dropoff hole. At first, she didn't recognize it, since it had a red stain on the bottom. But nobody else had a bag like that. Kyisha guessed that the baggage handlers had tossed around the bag in a rather brutal manner, and the berries were probably all smashed. She scrambled along the belt to retrieve it. She pulled the handle out and rolled it alongside her.

_I wonder if I have everything this time..._ she thought to herself.

She left there, stopping in front of a small cafe. It was called Choy's, and they served tea and egg rolls.

_Looks more calmer than the airport..._

She opened the door and went in. There was an old lady behind small bar in front of her and tables everywhere else. She could see a door that probably lead to the kitchen. The old lady smiled at the sight of Kyisha.

"Hello," she said, "Welcome to my cafe."

Kyisha smiled and said politely, "Could I get a cup of sweet tea please?"

"One minute, please," she said as she went through the door behind her.

She opened up her backpack, grabbed her notebook and her mechanical pencil. She started to write a letter. When she had written half of a page, the old lady was back holding a cup with steam over it.

"Thank you." Kyisha said as the old lady put the cup in front of her.

"You must be new in town." she said.

"Yes," Kyisha said with a sigh.

"You don't have to pay for that then." she said happily, "My treat."

"Okay..." She said, sipping at the tea, "This is delicious."

"I don't get that much anymore..." the old lady said to herself. She went back around the bar and through the door once more.

Kyisha looked around. She was at Terminal 7C. It looked basically like 17-B. Besides Choy's, there was a row of other shops. Woolywood's Smokehouse, Fisherman's Wharf, The Papermill, a gift shop, Mizzio's Pizza and another Nook's Boutique. Across from her, Kyisha could see a Pokemon Information Station.

"Hey! There you are!" said a familiar voice.

Kyisha looked down and saw Tangy. "Hey."

The gray cat smiled, offering a colorfully wrapped gift box. "I forgot to give you your bar code item." He handed her a card. "And this is the official Gardenia bar code for it. Never accept a strange gift at an airport without one of these."

Kyisha took the gift. "Uh, thanks. I guess."

Tangy waved goodbye. "Tootles!" He scampered out of sight.

Kyisha stared at the package. She had no idea what was inside. The tag on the outside only said ? She stowed it in her bag.

There was a loud scream. Kyisha turned and saw a crowd of bears in airport security uniforms running past her. One of the bears stopped in front of her, talking into his walkie-talkie. "This is 308. I'm in front of Choy's at Terminal 7. What's going on?"

"308," said the monotone female voice on the radio. "There is a dangerous monster at baggage claim. Use extreme caution."

"Baggage claim?" said Kyisha. "But I was just there!"

"Monster appears to have come off the runway and is now attacking airport personnel and customers. It appears to be sick. If it cannot be captured, please destroy it at once."

"Ten four," said the bear. He ran off down the hallway.

Kyisha sighed and drank the last of her tea. She stowed away her notepad and pencil. She grabbed the handle to her backpack and walked quickly to baggage claim.

_I hope I'll be able to do as I can,_ she thought. _Seeing that I was trained under Claire..._

Claire was an expert Pokemon trainer. She'd been on television programs about using Pokemon as watchdogs and guardians against criminals. She hoped the training would come in handy.

A mob of people and odd creatures rushed past her as she hurried down the escalator. She pushed through a flood of customers and came to a baggage conveyor.

A black shape had settled over the conveyor, its huge hairy body blocking up the luggage dump chute. The thing had sixteen legs, and glowing red eyes. The conveyor was stopped, its sliding steel plates scattered around on the floor among shredded rags and bone fragments. A burning mechanical smell hung in the air, mingled with a strong spicy odor. A security agent stood at each wall, aiming their weapons at the beast. Everyone else had fled.

One agent opened fire. The beast uttered a low growl. Big globs of white slime poured out of the creature's wounds. A great black head edged under the fluorescent light, opening its mandibles. A long tentacle shot out, wrapping around the bear's body, and he was dragged toward the conveyor.

"Get out of here!" someone shouted behind Kyisha.

Kyisha turned around. "What?"

A security agent was there, gesturing to the escalator. "Go! Now! Hurry!"

Kyisha heard a munching sound, then a scream. She turned and saw a ripped security uniform hanging from the monster's mouth.

Kyisha found herself being pushed to the escalator.

Shots were fired. There was another scream.

Kyisha looked back. Now only two agents were left.

* * *

Author's note: I don't write PBEM roleplaying games like normal people. Mine are more like novels that people occasionally add lines to, and I try very hard to make game mechanics flow with the story. This piece is part of one of those games. My co-author, Kyisha Kyagu, seems to have disappeared after the last section of this story, so the plot will stop abruptly after a few chapters until I can figure out that part.

I have a few chapters to go before we get to that piece, so get ready to enjoy some serious cheese.

I did most of the writing, my player only providing the main character's actions, which explains the distracting side trip to the tea shop and the reference to Claire, a character I'm not familiar with. It's also heavily influenced by Animal Crossing, making it a very strange version of a Pokemon game.


	2. Chapter 2: The Beast of Baggage Claim

Kyisha noticed her bag start to quiver a little. She opened it up and a ray of light streaked from a Pokeball and the Arcanine appeared. He gave a little bark and sniffed Kyisha curiously.

"Eni, we have a bit of a problem. See if you can talk to that creature over there. Maybe we can help it if it's in pain. Or at least stop it or calm it down..." She murmured to the Arcanine. It nodded and cautiously went to the black monster.

A large tentacle whipped out of the beast's body, giving the Arcanine a hard slap. The Pokemon flew through the air, smacking into a wall. The thing's bug mouth opened, and a spray of green glop spewed all over the Pokemon's body.

Eni whimpered, trying to shake off the slime. Some of it flew off, but the rest soaked into its coat.

"Aaaaaaugh!"

Munch! Another security agent disappeared into the monster's mouth.

Kyisha was on the edge to insanity. She ran up in front of the monster.

"Stop! Please, stop! Why are you harming all these people?!" She shouted, with her arms outspread to her sides, in front of the rest of the security agents.

Being the conversationalist it was, the creature only hissed. It was impossible to tell what the creature was thinking. The dark face showed no expression.

The creature shifted its weight on its legs. Whether this was for attack or defense was uncertain. "S-s-s-s-s-s-s-s-s-s-s-s..."

Was that a laugh? Was it mocking her?

"Saaaaahhhhhh..."

Was it afraid? Was this a hiss of fear? Did it want another snack, or a friend?

One of the agents threw a canister of tear gas at it. The monster opened its mouth and a loud roar came out. All the fluorescent lights in the room shattered.

The emergency wall lights switched on automatically. Their light was hazy, subdued. There was a scream as another airport security official disappeared.

The tear gas wafted over towards Kyisha. She tried to wave it away, but she began feeling a faint burning sensation in her lungs.

Kyisha pulled a handkerchief over her mouth and nose. She quickly grabbed a container filled with black colored pellets the size of golf balls. "Here!" She opened the container and threw its contents to the monster.

The creature's tentacle shot out, picking up the carbo pellets with its suckers. The creature sucked the food into its mouth. It sat back, folding its legs underneath itself. It opened its mouth. An unmelodious singing sound came out of its mouth. An eerie, moaning, ghost-like noise.

Kyisha's Mightyena stood in a daze, slowly creeping closer to the monster.

"Stop, Mightyena!" Kyisha's luggage began to rattle and shake. She smelled something burning. She looked in her bag. Her Pokeballs were glowing. Smoke rose from the imitation leather lining. A puff of flame came out, and all the Pokeballs went bouncing out of the bag, onto the floor. She tried to grab one, but it was like touching a hot burner on a stove. She jerked her hand back.

Another fire burned holes in her suitcase. Glowing hot Pokeballs were rolling all over the place.

She saw a flash. Her plant-like Bayleef Brute appeared. Flash. An insectoid Electabuzz and scaly Dragonair came out. Flash. There was her fox hybrid Ninetails.

The monster's neck swelled up like a balloon. A deep gurgling sound came out, like someone had put an air hose into a giant vat of ink.

It distended its jaw. A massive shower of slime sprayed out, coating everything in sight. All of Kyisha's Pokemon wobbled dizzily, then shook their bodies, trying to dislodge the slime.

The Ninetails looked depressed.

The Dragonair rolled over on its back and just laid there. It was alive, but was apparently unmotivated to do much of anything.

Kyisha sighed. Serenely and determinedly, she stepped forth toward the creature without a doubt in her mind. Her heart was racing with excitement as she continued forth toward the creature.

The big monster leaned forward, as if trying to get a better look. It paused a long time.

The creature folded its legs, pressing its body close to the conveyor. It stretched out its neck, lowering its head until it was almost touching the floor. Its body swelled like it were taking a deep breath. A lump rose in the creature's throat. It distended its jaw, and a spherical black object the size of a musket ball rolled out onto the floor.

The ball rolled around in a semicircle, leaving a trail of translucent slime in its wake. It passed in between Brute and Electrabuzz, stopping in front of the Eni.

The Arcanine sniffed at the ball, growled and backed up.

The black spheroid unfolded like a cabbage, revealing a glob of something like tar. A squatty, saurian shape began to form from the substance. It stood up on its hind legs, stepping out of the shell. It looked like a black saurian Charmander.

Eni tensed up. She pointed her nose straight at the Charmander, folding one paw like a hunting dog might. She glanced at Kyisha, wagged her tail, then pointed her nose at the Charmander again.

The black Charmander opened its mouth. Strings of black slime hemmed in its mouth. "Kkshharr," it managed to say.

The beast on the conveyor repositioned itself, sitting back on its legs again. Its tentacle slapped against the floor.

I may be crazy, Kyisha thought. But I''ll protect my Pokemon as long as I live... Unless we're in battle...

Kyisha spun around and ran forth to protect Eni, but she felt sort of silly about it in retrospect.

The slime was on the floor this time, and not on her pets. It wasn't spraying up. The black ball had left a trail of slime on the floor tiles, and she had panicked unnecessarily. Arcanine was safe.

Eni barked disapprovingly at her action.

"I'm fine Eni..."

"Kharrr?" said the black Charmander. It hopped back and forth on its feet, blowing a taunting puff of fire into the air. It slapped its tail on the ground, then screamed, "KHARRR!"

Kyisha heard the sound of something scampering down the escalator. She turned and saw a short creature in a kimono and a giant fedora lugging a backpack twice its size down the steps. The creature looked like a rodent, but the exact species was unclear. Its ears were wide and bat-like. It wore a monocle and a shiny black glove on one paw. "Stand aside!" it cried in a shrilly voice. "Cobber Dobber coming through!"


	3. Chapter 3: Battle Royale

Kyisha stared at the thing. "Cobber...?"

`Cobber' dragged his backpack in front of Kyisha's group of Pokemon, opening the flap. He dug out a shiny gray cube decorated with lacy silver patterns. Cobber's paws pressed against circular panels on the sides of the object until it made a clicking sound and the sides of the box split open. It then raised its paw in the air and flung the box on the ground. "Pikachu! Go!" There was a burst of blinding blue light, and a red Pikachu, a fat squatty sort of striped rabbit appeared.

"Peeka! Peeka!" the Pikachu cried.

"Pikachu! Lightning attack!"

The Pikachu squatted down, looking like it were trying to squeeze an elephant out of its rectum, its facial expressions contorting, its body squatting down in a fat lump, the sides of its body swelling with exertion. "Peeeeeeeeeeee...!" Its cheeks began glowing blue. "Kaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa...!" Its tail vibrated. Its claws dug into the tile floor. It looked like it were in pain. "CHOOOOOOOOOOOO!" A blast of blue lightning erupted from the Pikachu's mouth, striking the black Charmander.

The Charmander screamed and exploded into a puddle of ichory goo.

Cobber's fat raccoon tail slapped the ground cheerfully. "Cobberdobber, cobberdobber, cobberdobber," he muttered with a retarded grin on his face. He pointed to the monster. "Pikachu! Again! Lightning attack!"

The Pikachu flopped on the floor like a sack of potatoes, exhausted.

"Aaargh!" Cobber's tail slapped against the floor. "Stupid Pikachu!" Cobber paced back and forth. "Now what do I do, now what do I do. Cobber's on first. Who's on second. No, no, no. Who's on first, what's on second. Who's on first? Cobber's on first, that's who. No, who's on second."

Kyisha grabbed some Pokemon food from her bag and held it out to Cobber. "Maybe this'll help."

Cobber took the Pokemon food and stared at it. "Cobber be thanking you, but Pikachu probably need rest." He put it on the floor, then dug in his bag, taking out another cube. He clicked it around like a Rubik's cube, then threw it on the ground. A pink saurian creature with a plant bulb for a back appeared in a blinding flash of light.

"Bulbasaur, vine whip attack!" Cobber shouted.

The squatty little reptile leapt forward and flung a long green whip at the monster. Two of the monster's legs broke off. It let out a gurgling yell.

"Again!"

The Bulbasaur jumped and whipped the monster. The monster howled in pain as another leg came off. It raised a tentacle, giving the Bulbasaur a fierce slap. It flew through the air, slamming into a wall with painful force.

The Bulbasaur lay on the floor, coughing and spitting up blood.

Pikachu shook itself and got up, padding over to the food. It gobbled it up in a bite, then buried its head in Cobber's backpack, making slurping and smacking sounds.

Cobber raised his hat and smacked the Pokemon away from the bag. "Grrr! Stupid Pikachu!"

"Pika!" It smiled and licked him.

"Yooo!" Cobber frowned. He pointed at the monster. "Lightning attack, Pikachu!"

Pikachu shook. "Rrrrr."

"Lightning attack!"

"Ohhhh." Pikachu shook its head and padded closer to the monster. It buckled down, grunted, and began swelling up. "Peeee..." Its hackles raised up, its red fur bristling. "Kaaaaaa..."

SMACK! The tentacle hurled Pikachu against the wall. It fell to the ground with a thud. "Owwww..." Pikachu was having difficulty getting up. One leg was folded underneath itself in an awkward, uncomfortable position. Broken. "WAAAAAH!"

Cobber shook his head. "Stupid Pikachu!"

Cobber dug in his bag, fishing out another cube. "Stupid wimpy Pokemon," he grumbled to himself, toying with the box. It made a clicking sound. He threw it on the floor, and a ditzy looking white duck came out, its huge eyes darting back and forth.

"Psyduck! Attack!" Cobber cried.

The duck stared at him. "Psy?"

Cobber pointed at the monster. "Attack! Bite! Do anything!"

"Psy?"

Cobber crossed his arms and sighed. "Fine. Just go over there and annoy it a lot."

"Psy!" It shivered and waddled behind Cobber's kimono, quacking at him.

Cobber frowned. He went to his bag, digging out a cluster of berries. "Here. Eat this."

Psyduck opened its orange beak, chomping down on them. "Yum, yum!" It began to look jittery. "Psy-psy-psy-psy!" It hopped up and down, squatted and leaped into the air. "Psiiiieeeee!"

Cobber shoved the creature's white feathered butt forward.

"Psy-psy-psy-psyduck!" The duck gleefully waddled over to the baggage compartment, flapping its wings. "Psiiiiiiiiiieeeeeeee!"

The big monster extended its neck, bringing its head closer to the duck. Psyduck jumped up and nipped at one of the creature's legs. "Psy!"

The monster let out a deafening bellow. There was a loud click, and parts of its exoskeleton popped open. A series of tentacles flopped out on all sides. They whipped around the room, hitting everything in sight. Suitcases and carry-alls flew through the air, smashing apart as they hit walls. Psyduck hit a wall and became injured. Kyisha's Pokemon went flying in all directions.

Cobber reached into his bag, taking out a fencing mask and a lockblade knife. After extending the knife, he put the mask on his face, screamed, and charged at the monster. He knocked off a leg.

The creature roared, grabbed Cobber with a tentacle, and knocked him against a wall. The little guy blacked out.

Kyisha stared at the beast. Before she could do anything, a tentacle flew at her, throwing her into a post. She saw stars, then fell unconscious.


	4. Chapter 4: Team Ryu

Kyisha awoke in a hotel room, under a blanket. The walls were plain gray. There was a television, but it was off. An ugly abstract painting hung above her. Tacky green curtains covered a window at one end of the room. On the other side, she could see a bathroom and a coat rack. A double bed across from her held a lumpy shape, hidden under blankets.

A fuzzy white-black face leaned over her. Kyisha gasped. It was a panda with messy brown hair, dressed in a pink gi. "Good morning!" the panda smiled. "Are you feeling okay?"

Kyisha looked around nervously. "Who are you? What am I doing here?"

"I am Kimpap. You...fight monster at airport, and monster beat you. I...find you and take you away quickly, before monster hit me." The panda made snaking gestures with her black paws. "Monster very dangerous. Long...tentals...very dangerous. I carry you up stairs...and put you in hotel room. Your...friend...I grab him next." She gestured to the other bed. "He sleepy now."

Kyisha sat up. "Where are my things?"

Kimpap frowned. "You...and...man...own...small creature. Monster hurt them. Very bad. Cukek go take them to hospital for creature. You can go visit if you feel good now." She took a deep breath. "Monster very fright. I no like. Something happen. Cukek say monster vanish when she pick up Pokie...pet. She say it go into...TV? I no understand. But monster is gone now."

Who is this Cukek person? Kyisha thought. No matter. "What about my luggage?"

Kimpap pursed her lips. "Your things...all over floor. I try to pick up much as I can, but...many things break. I am very sorry. I buy you new suitcase and put things in it. Again, I am so sorry."

Kyisha shrugged. "Its okay. All the items I had with me that were break-able. I got them from a dollar store." Still, was that monster a computer type Pokemon? Or was it a transforming Pokemon in disguise? Kyisha reached up and touched her head. It had been bandaged with gauze.

"Your head...bleed," said Kimpap. "Frasure is small, but I bandage and it should be okay."

Kyisha nodded. She got out of the bed and stood up, stretching this way and that. "I'm going to go see my Pokemon...I'll be back later."

"Okay!" said Kimpap. "Maybe Cukek will take you there!"

Kyisha looked around. "Where is this `Cukek?'"

"She back soon. Just wait." The panda gestured to a black Magafox on top of a dresser. "You want to watch TV?"

"Well, I guess." Kyisha pulled a chair out from under a small table and looked at the television. Kimpap switched it on.

A fat rabbit in a white outfit and a chef's hat appeared on the monitor. It stood behind a counter loaded with dishes and a series of plain colored boxes. A large sign behind the counter read `FUFU.' Small print above it, written in a cursive font, appeared to say `Cooling Masher.'

"Now, while we have that quiche cooking, let's make our Mandarin salad. First, we'll take our Vegetable box and open it up." The rabbit grabbed a red box with a bold V printed on it, opening it up. He dumped it into a bowl. "Now, we want to put some Fruit in it, so..." He grabbed a box marked with an F, pouring it in. "And for the final touch, add the croutons found in your Grain packet." He opened a blue packet marked with G and poured it in. He raised up the bowl to show the camera. "Voila! A simple Mandarin salad! Remember, that recipe is V+G+F. And happy cooking!"

"Wow!" said Kimpap. "I will try!"

"That seems really...easy," said Kyisha. "Why is he on TV?"

Kimpap shrugged. "Fufu make cooking seem easy. It is actually very difficult. You need to have good skill point to cook well."

Kyisha laughed.

The screen turned black, and a flashy logo popped up on the screen. "This is a GBN Special Report," said an announcer.

The rabbit's image was replaced with the image of a bear in a black suit and tie. He was standing in front of the airport building, holding a microphone.

"This is Mitch Gagme, reporting live from Gardenia International Airport, where just hours ago, some sort of monster allegedly attacked several civilians and security officers, eating several, and wounding others. From what we can understand at this time, a black creature, roughly the size of a small truck, somehow entered the airport and climbed inside the chute leading to baggage claim. From there, it seems that it ate at least ten individuals, severely injured twenty others, and caused roughly 500,000 p. worth of damage. The details are sketchy at this time, and airport officials are hesitant to discuss the matter, but we'll keep you posted on any new developments in this case."

The door to the hotel room opened. In stepped a blue bird dressed in red pajamas and a stocking cap. She had a yellow beak and bags under her eyes. She waved at Kyisha, giving her a sleepy smile. "Hi."

"Hello," said Kyisha, looking up from the television. "Are you Cukek?"

"It's Cupcake," said the bird. "And yes, that's my name. Why?"

"Cukek," said Kimpap. "She...want to see Poket Mon hospital."

"Oh." She nodded.

"Can Cobber come to Pokemon hospital, too?"

Kyisha looked and saw the strange critter in the kimono sitting up in the other bed. His head was bandaged, his arm put in a sling.

"Sure," Cupcake sighed. "But boy am I sleepy." She yawned and opened the door, walking out.

Kyisha followed her. She heard a moan come from behind her. "Owww! Why couldn't I have fallen on my fake arm?"

They were in a fancy looking hotel. The carpet was thick and clean. Framed pictures of airplanes and birds hung on the walls. The wall lamps were bright and pristine. They took an elevator down a floor, walking across the shiny lobby floor, heading out to the parking lot. They walked to a small gray economy car with a curving logo on the hood. The license plate read 7-90363-00711-1. The door panel said that it was an "Expo," whatever that meant. Cupcake opened doors and they all got in, Kyisha seating herself in the front, Cobber sitting in back. Cupcake drove the car through a couple side streets. She looked drowsy.

Cobber leaned over Kyisha's seat. His big Indiana Jones hat brushed against the ceiling. "Cobber think monster isn't gone."

"You've got that right," Cupcake said with a sleepy tone of voice. "I saw it go. It just sorta...vanished into thin air. It was really creepy." Her eyes began closing, and the car started veering towards the median.

"Hey!" said Cobber. "Wake up!"

"Oh!" Cupcake sat up with a jolt. "Sorry. I was up all night." She straightened their course and they turned down an exit ramp to a freeway.

"What do you think that thing was?" Kyisha asked. "A computer Pokemon? Or was it a transforming Pokemon in disguise?"

Cobber shook his head. "Cobber doesn't know. Cobber doesn't think it was Pokemon at all." He frowned, flopping his head against Kyisha's headrest.

Cupcake drove them down the freeway. The car swerved back and forth between lanes as the bird faded in an out of consciousness. It seemed like everyone was honking at them. They went down an exit, down a street, and continued on it for a few blocks, until they came to a large sprawling complex lined with buildings of various shapes and sizes.

The place looked like a college campus. There was a vast metered parking area, and the buildings ranged from the very new, to the historical. A wide building in the center of the complex resembled a campus center. Three flags flew above the structure. One depicted a Pokeball, another showed a black cube, and the one in the middle was green, displaying something like a hippie flower design with a happy face in the middle of the flower. A massive statue of a pelican stood on the roof of the structure, seeming to shelter the entire building under its colossal wings.

Kyisha stared out the window. "What is this place?"

"This is Pokemon center," said Cobber.

Cupcake fell asleep. The car hopped over a median strip, rolling lazily over the mound of grass above it.

"Hey!" Kyisha shouted. "Wake up!"

"Oh!" Cupcake shook herself and looked around. "Oops!" She pulled the car in reverse, getting back on the street. They parked, paid the meter, and walked into the middle building.

It was like a big office building. The floors were polished, the walls were clean and elegantly decorated. One wall was covered in plaques and awards for various Pokemon achievements. There was a trophy case containing more prizes. They passed a security desk and went on down a hallway. They turned a corner and walked for several feet through something like a hospital. It was like a maze. Cupcake fell asleep standing up several times, and they had to wake her to figure out where they were going. At last, they came to an area marked with a sign reading `Pokemon Trauma Center.' They walked a bit further, and they were at a ward filled with small transparent boxes. Some of the boxes were empty, holding only blankets. Others held all kinds of Pokemon in various degrees of health. It reminded Kyisha vaguely of what they did with newborn infants at hospitals, except those boxes would have been smaller.

Kyisha looked around for her pets, but saw about three or four pets that were almost identical to hers. It made it difficult to pinpoint where Rain or any of the other ones were.

A black woman in scrubs patterned with Pokeballs came up to her. Her hair was in cornrows and she wore large glasses. Her name tag said Shamika Thompson. "Hello? Do you need some help?"

Kyisha shrugged. "Where's my Pokemon?"

"And your name is?"

Kyisha was about to reply, but Cupcake stopped her. "Cupcake Rasenburby."

Shamika nodded. "Right this way." They were led to the end of the room. The nurse took a clipboard off of one of the boxes, reading it. "Most of your Pokemon turned out fine. They had some minor cuts and scrapes, but there was no internal damage. They should heal okay. Dr. Lister doesn't know why their skin is discolored, but he says it's nothing serious, and they should be fine." She sighed. "I wish I could say the same about your other ones."

Kyisha sucked in her breath. Cobber began biting his nails.

"Your Psyduck has suffered a lot of internal injury. It's in the OR, along with your Bulbasaur."

Cobber gasped.

"Your Pikachu had skeletal fractures. They had to break its bones and put in some pins to fix it. But the rest of them are fine."

Kyisha sighed in relief. Cobber looked upset.

"The healthy ones are free to go. I just need a signature, and I'll capture them for you." She handed Cupcake the clipboard. Cupcake signed it, then began nodding off. Shamika had to tug the clipboard out of the bird's grip. The bird shook her head. "Oh! Sorry."

Shamika went to the wall, pressing buttons on a large keypad. A number of vacuum hoses dropped down from the ceiling, sucking the Pokemon inside. The Pokeballs rolled out on a tray near the door. Kyisha picked them up.

"When will my Pokemon be okay?" Cobber asked in a small voice.

"I don't know. Your Pikachu might be healed in a few weeks, but the others..." She shook her head.

Cobber began to cry. "WAAAAAAH!"

Kyisha stuck her Pokeballs in her pocket and patted Cobber on the back gently. "Cobber, I'll stay with you until your Pokemon get better if you want. The contest isn't until next month. I wanted to come here early so I knew the town better so I wouldn't get lost on my way there."

"Oh it's no use." Cobber sighed. "It is not that far away. Two days and tournament begins." His ears drooped. "Two days!" He shook his head. "There's no way! What to do...what to do..."

"Do you have any other Pokemon? If not I could lend you some of mine."

Cobber stared at her and sighed. "It's just not the same. I've had those Pokemon for a long time, and they're my best. I trained them for so long, and now they're all beat up and broken. It's just not fair."

Kyisha zoned out for a few minutes and then snapped back to reality, sighing. _I have no clue what I can do for Cobber...I wish I could do something...anything..._ she thought to herself.

Shamika frowned and said, "There's a waiting room outside and to the right, if you don't mind."

Cupcake nodded. Kyisha saw her go out and turn the corner.

Cobber whimpered and walked out of the ward. Kyisha followed him.

"Let's go for walk," he said. "Cobber only get in way."

Kyisha shrugged. The two went back down the hallway and out to the parking lot. They strolled down a sidewalk in silence.

The lot was well maintained. Large dogwoods bloomed pink and white along the parking islands, their faint manure scent wafting in the air. Birds and Pidgies flapped around, some landing on phone lines and staircase railings, some pecking at crumbs on the pavement, or something in the grass. As they passed a trash can, a small rodent poked its head out, carrying a glob of something in its mouth. It ducked back in.

Kyisha glanced up at the Pokemon center. A curtain in one of the upper story windows moved aside, and she could see a dark shape appear next to the glass. It lingered there for a few seconds, then vanished.

Cobber sighed. "Cobber don't have chance against Team Pandram now. My best Pokemon, kaput!" He started crying again.

Kyisha patted him on the back.

Cobber's ears and shoulders drooped. He looked up at Kyisha, his tail switching back and forth like a cat. He looked away for a minute, then looked at her again. "If someone stand in for Cobber, maybe Cobber can heal Pokemon and get back into tournament." He bowed his head. "Wait. That won't work." He sat down on a bench, staring at Kyisha. "I still won't have a chance." His arm shifted in his sling. The other one hung limp at his side like a lead weight.

Someone across the parking lot yelled "hey!" But Kyisha couldn't tell if it were anything to worry about or not. Cobber didn't seem to notice it. He looked away, then stared at Kyisha again. "What is your name?"

"Kyisha."

Cobber nodded. "Would Kyisha like to take Cobber's place in Pelican Tournament?" He bit his lip. "Cobber will help Kyisha. Maybe even give Kyisha...no, Cobber's Pokemon no good. Best ones in hospital." He sighed. "But Cobber will help with other things, okay? Cobber might not always be there, since favorite Pokemon are in hospital, but Cobber will try to help when he can. What say you? Want to make team?" The fingers of his free arm tapped the bench.

"Yes, I'll form a team with you. Don't worry. I'll be fine with my Pokemon. I'm bonded with them enough so they'll work with anyone who's friends with me," Kyisha happily proclaimed.

"Great!" Cobber jumped up, offering his free hand. Kyisha shook it, and noticed it to be a bit hard and unusual. She stared at it. "Cobber lost arm to Galactus," the critter shrugged. "It is long story." He let go, taking a deep breath. "So...now Cobber and Kyisha are a team. What should we be calling team? Team Cobber?"

Kyisha shook her head. "How about...BattleRyuu?"

Cobber rubbed his chin. "Battle...Ryuu. Interested."

"Does that sound good to you?"

Cobber nodded. "Sounds great!" He sighed. "But now we need to get ready, and fast. Cobber is registered, but thinks we should change registration now."

"Okay."

He walked toward the main entrance of the building. Kyisha followed.

"Does Kyisha find Cobber talk annoying? Some people say Cobber say Cobber too much. Cobber is sorry if Cobber annoys Kyisha with Cobber talk. What Kyisha think?"

"You don't talk too much, Cobber," Kyisha said, smiling.

Cobber grinned. "I'm glad you don't mind. Sometimes Cobber is compared to creature in popular science fiction movie." He shrugged. "Cobber don't know why. But people say Cobber talk annoying."

They went through the double doors, walking past the desk. Cobber grabbed a pamphlet from a rack of course schedules next to a wall. He handed it to Kyisha. "Here is map. You may want to use. This is Pokemon center, where we learn how to be good Pokemon trainer. Take a good look. Cobber will explain if anything confuses Kyisha."

"Thanks."

She stared at the map.

Cobber led her to a machine in the corner of the room. The sign above it said `Pokemon Kiosk' and it had a logo with a black puzzle box on it. Cobber leaned over it, staring at a monitor on the device. He poked a few menu buttons with his artificial hand, entering a registration system. After he'd typed a few things in, a yellow card popped out of a slot. He took it, stuffing it in his pocket. "Okay! Team Battle Ryuu is in business!" His tail wagged back and forth like a happy dog. He stopped. He put his hands on his hips, giving her a hard look. "Cobber wonders if Kyisha is ready. Cobber thinks that Kyisha may have to train or get equipment or something."

"You have some bags at the hotel," said a sleepy voice behind them. "They might be handy. I could go get them while you're looking around campus, if that's okay." She shrugged. "Or, if you want, you could come with me. It's up to you."

"Go ahead, Cupcake. I'll be okay for a while," said Kyisha. She turned to Cobber. "Can we go look at the gym?" Maybe even train a bit...

Cobber nodded. "Yes. Good idea! Cobber was just thinking you might need some training."

"The gym, huh?" said Cupcake. "Okay. I'll look there when I come back." She walked away.

Cobber marched up to a staircase, leading Kyisha up a floor. They passed by a lounge and a copy shop, pushing out a pair of glass doors next to a desk. The two strolled down a sidewalk cutting through well manicured lawns. Dogwoods framed the path. The sidewalk split into four directions. One led to a small old stone building, one led down to a parking lot, one led north, with two sculptures and a street at its end, and one led to a giant red and blue structure with a barrel shaped dome. They went to the domed building, pushing through the entrance. They passed a small eating area and some offices, coming up to a desk. A white duck sat behind the desk, reading a book. Cobber took a card out of his pocket, running it through a device on the desk. The duck turned a page and nodded, waving.

Cobber led Kyisha through a turnstile. They went down a staircase and came to a desk containing towels and equipment. A hallway ran alongside the desk. One end led to a workout room with weights and exercise equipment. Cobber went toward the opposite end.

They came out into a round, wide room containing seven boxing rings, a series of battered punching bags, speed bags, chairs and weights. A mob of odd creatures and Pokemon stood around, practicing, exercising, or standing around the rings, cheering and coaching as pairs of characters fought each other.

A white kiosk stood against the wall near the entrance. Cobber led Kyisha over to it, pointing at the screen. "This is fighting queue. Whenever you are ready, you can pick someone on the list and challenge them to a fight."

Kyisha looked at the monitor and saw a list of names and countries. "Hmmm..." She squinted at the monitor. "So...how can I tell what type of Pokemon they are, or how strong they are?"

Cobber shrugged. "Trainer use a lot of different Pokemon. System is set up by user name, not Pokemon. Sometimes Pokemon decommission or die and trainer gets new Pokemon. I'm sorry, but Cobber cannot possibly know everything. Kyisha must learn about trainers by trial and error. Kyisha is in luck, though. All trainers are on campus at the moment. Kyisha can try anyone."

Kyisha scratched her head, staring at the list of countries.

"So," said Cobber. "What would you like to do first? Do you want to exercise, or do you want to test out your skills on someone at the gym and see how well you can do?"

She squinted at the screen. "I'll battle Kim."

"Kim from Korea?"

"Yes."

Cobber nodded. He pushed a button, selecting the name. "Cobber thinks there will be five to fifteen minute wait."

"Well, all right."

Cobber pointed at a large monitor on the wall. "Kyisha will be on board when it is time."

Cobber gestured to a ring. "Team Battle Ryuu will be in ring soon. Let's watch game in meantime."

They approached a raised platform surrounded by ropes and padding. Two figures faced each other on a mat, clutching odd devices in their hands. On one side was a man dressed in a purple costume and a black Zorro mask. Kyisha guessed he was `Grape Man.' A yard across from him, looking quite fierce, was a short, scrawny figure in a loincloth, presumably `Weehawk.' A squatty little man in a striped referee outfit stood in the middle, observing.

In the center of the ring were two creatures. One was a bizarre black thing resembling a clown, with yellow markings running up its arms and legs, and a yellow design like a face on its body. Across from it stood a bipedal gorilla-like creature with yellow fur and black zig-zag patterns running up and down its body.

"Electabuzz! Hit him again!" Weehawk shouted.

The gorilla thing raised its paws, clenching its teeth. It began to glow. It pointed at the clown thing. A blast of light shot out.

The clown thing flew back, its white kid gloves flailing in the air. It hit the mat with a loud thud. Cheers erupted from the crowd.

Grape Man frowned and stood the creature back up. "Dusknoir! Vortex attack!"

The clown stomped forward, setting its feet down in heavy steps like a sumo wrestler. The mouth on its stomach opened, and air began rushing in. The Electabuzz slid forward and fell over. Its claws dug into the rubber mat, desperately fighting for purchase.

The air rushed into the clown's stomach like a powerful vacuum cleaner. SHOOOOOOOOOOOM!

The referee screamed and disappeared inside the creature's mouth. There were a chorus of shouts and mutters, interspersed with cheers.

SHOOOOOOOOOOOOM.

Electabuzz flew up into the air, zooming into the gaping maw. Weehawk dropped down and grabbed for his Pokemon, but it was too late. The mouth closed.

Grape Man smiled with smug satisfaction. "Thanks for feeding my pet!"

"Hey! You can't do that! Pokemon aren't supposed to be harmed in this gym!"

"Neither are the referees, you moron!"

Grape Man just shrugged. He zapped the Dusknoir inside a puzzle cube and climbed out of the ring.

"Hey!"

Grape Man was gone.

The scoreboard now read "PENALTY-NO SCORE" under Ring 5.

Kyisha swallowed. "Are all the fights that bad?"

Cobber shook his head. "Cobber doesn't think so. Grape Man get no score. See?"

"Oh."

A girl in a cheerleader outfit and fake cat ears climbed over the ropes, stepping into the ring. A scaly beast resembling a stegosaurus climbed into the opposite side. They faced each other, taking out box shaped devices.

Kyisha felt someone jabbing her arm. "Kyisha must go to ring seven!" He pointed to an empty ring in the back corner. A scrawny looking kid with black hair and a red and black striped shirt was standing in the ring, holding up a Pokemon device.

Kyisha nodded, marching over that way. She climbed over the ropes, staring at the kid. A few odd creatures wandered over to the ring to watch them.

"Are you Kim?"

The boy nodded. "You must be Team Battle Ryuu." He snickered. "Some team!"

Kyisha glared at him. "I'll show you!" She took out her Pokedex.

"I got your stuff!" said a voice. Kyisha turned around and saw a beak sticking through the ropes. She stared at the fuzzy blue face. Cupcake was holding up a black plastic suitcase covered in Korean stickers. "I had to put your things in one of Kimpap's old suitcases, but I've got most of it in there."

"Thanks. I'll probably need it soon." She turned around, facing the boy. "All right. Let's see what you got!"

"It will be a pleasure to kick your ass!" Kim smiled. He clicked a button on the device. A smaller box popped out. He clicked it open, throwing in into the ring.

There was a flash of light, and a fat, rounded bird appeared. He threw two more boxes down. An orange dragon-like creature with a flaming tail appeared, followed by a crazy looking thing with antennas and an elfin face.


	5. Chapter 5: Wolf Dago

She stared at her opponent's Pokemon a bit, frowning. He appeared to have a Natu, a Charizard and a Volbeat.

Cobber leaned over the ropes. "Is Kyisha ready?"

"Yep, and this'll be fun..." She took out three pokeballs. "Go! Eni, Nuoh, Brale!"

"Grrrrrrrr," Eni growled.

"Mne?" said the bluish-white serpent creature.

The nine tailed fox Pokemon tensed up. "Rrrrrrrr..."

"Go Nuoh, use Hydro Pump on the Volbeat! Brale, use Psychic on Charizard! Eni, use flamethrower on the Natu!"

Kyisha's three Pokemon looked confused, like they had never heard of those commands before.

Nuoh blinked, an expression of bafflement appearing on its face. It leapt forward at the Volbeat, doing the only thing it seemed to know to do. It wrapped its tail around the weird mutant elf thing, biting it five times with its dragon mouth. A burst of light could be seen coming out of it. The Dragonair jumped back.

The Volbeat wobbled, then froze in place, stunned.

The Arcanine gave Kyisha an odd look, then jumped at the Natu, giving it a mean bite.

The Ninetales flew at the Charizard, flipped and smacked the dragon thing with its tail.

Kyisha's mouth dropped open. "Holy crap!" What's wrong with my Pokemon?

Kim grinned at her. "Stupid American." He nodded to his pets.

The Charizard let out a loud, menacing growl. Kyisha's Pokemon weren't scared by it.

The Volbeat threw its body at Eni. Eni let out a yelp.

The Natu flew up into the air, flapping around. A white-purple substance splashed down on Nuoh's head. The little dragon thing shook its head in annoyance.

I guess I'll use their basic attacks then...

"Eni, use Tackle! Nuoh, use Iron Tail! Brale, use Quick Attack!"

_Please...Please...Please...I've been with you three long enough so we are bonded...Even if we lose, I'll still believe in you..._

The Arcanine leapt into the air, slamming its body into the Natu.

The snake dragon creature jumped at the bird, whacking it with its tail. The Natu staggered backwards.

Brale charged at the Volbeat, giving it a good body slam.

"Get them!" Kim shouted.

The Natu flapped at Eni, pecking it in the face. Eni barked, backing away.

The Volbeat floated up in the air, shooting a blue beam of light at Nuoh. The Dragonair ducked out of the way and the beam hit a guy standing behind the ring. The man started wobbling around, hitting people with his fists.

The Charizard pounced at Brale, but Brale jumped out of the way, letting the creature tumble over the edge. Crash! It knocked over a row of folding chairs.

"Good job, you three! Eni, Ember! Nuoh, Water Gun! Brale, try your Psychic attack!" _I so hope this works...Just a little bit of a bigger step..._ Kyisha frantically watched her Pokemon.

The Charizard shook itself off and flew back into the ring.

Eni roared and leapt at the Charizard. A cloud of black smoke puffed out as it made contact with the scaly body. It hopped back, opened its mouth, and let out another cloud.

The little snake-dragon stood up straight, raised the wings on the sides of its head, and a blast of electricity shot out of its body. The Charizard stiffened up like a statue.

The nine tailed fox pounced on the little elfin bug thing. The critter caught fire for a brief second, then flopped over, unconscious. Kim growled something in Korean, opening a cube. The Volbeat disappeared in a flash of light. "Get them!"

The Natu flapped over to Eni, beating its wings against the fuzzy body, tapping Eni with its beak. Eni wasn't bothered by it.

The Charizard wiggled a bit, but didn't do anything else.

Cobber leaned over the side of the mat. "Kyisha! Keep it up! Kyisha is winning!"

"Yeah!" Cupcake shouted. "Go!"

Kyisha smiled with determination. "Eni, use Bite on Natu! Nuoh, use Tackle on Charizard! Brale, you use Tackle on Charizard too!" _I'm glad I have some support. I should give my Pokemon some support too..._ She thought to herself. "Good job, Eni, Nuoh, Brale!" She cheered her Pokemon on energetically.

Eni leapt at the tiny dragon Pokemon. It fell over unconscious. Kim stomped his foot and sucked it back inside his Pokemon cube.

"Okay, never mind about the Charizard! Everyone get the Natu!"

Nuoh jumped at the Natu, pounding the critter. It also fell unconscious.

"Aaargh! You stupid American!" Kim shouted. He ran over and began slapping Kyisha on the face, shouting insulting obscenities at her.

"Boy," said Cupcake. "He sure has a limited vocabulary, doesn't he?"

Cobber shrugged. "Maybe English is difficult for Kim. Should we help Kyisha?"

"I don't know," said Cupcake. "She doesn't look like she's in much danger."

An anteater sat down next to them. "I think she should resolve the dispute on her own. It is the hallmark of a good Pokemon trainer to remain cool under pressure and make decisions."

Kyisha shielded herself, and told Kim, "Losing isn't something to get mad about. It may not be the best thing in the world but learn from your losses and start again...Slapping and insulting me won't help either!"

Kim growled something incomprehensible in reply. He clenched his fists. "Cheater!" he spat. "You must have loaded Pokemon with steroid. I will show you! If you meet me in tournament, your Pokemon are dead!" He climbed out of the ring and stomped out of the room.

Someone else wanted to use the ring. Kyisha climbed out.

"Good job, Kyisha!" said Cobber. "Cobber is proud!"

"Yeah!" said Cupcake. "Great job! Is this your first Pokemon battle?"

Kyisha frowned. "No. I've had lots of Pokemon battles. My Pokemon have evolved and gotten really strong. We've been through a lot together."

Cupcake and Cobber stared at each other. "Evolve?"

Cobber shrugged. "Maybe Kyisha come from strange country where Pokemon evolve."

Kyisha stared at him. "You mean yours don't? Don't you have Mightyena and Poochyena here?"

Cobber nodded. "Cobber has heard of Mightyena, and Poochyena, but not Pokemon evolutioning. Gardenia Pokemon just...transform. Pokemon made of energy called Niriu. When Pokemon grow enough, they mature in phase called `The Change.' This is not evolve, but simply changing one energy form for another."

"Yeah," said the anteater. "The Pokemon turn into pure energy when they go into Pokeballs or Pokecubes, because that's part of their composition. When you see them change, it's because they're doing an energy shift, like radiation going from Alpha to Gamma waves. Your so-called `Ghost Pokemon' are examples of Niriu energy in its purer state," said the anteater.

"But what about your injured Pokemon?" said Kyisha. "If they're just energy, then wouldn't your Pikachu's injuries be easy to fix?"

Cobber shook his head. "Energy profile of Pikachu is damaged. There is still much we do not know about Niriu energy."

"If you break your own arm, you can't just restructure your genetic sequence to repair the damage. The same goes for Niriu waves. Our scientists still don't know how to use the energy to do repairs, so veteranerians have to operate on Pokemon the old fashioned way, with surgical tools and instruments."

"Doctor cannot use Niriu energy to bring dead Pokemon back to life, either," Cobber sighed.

"Well, ah, thank you, Mr. Wizard," said Cupcake. "It was fascinating."

"No problem." The anteater stood up, walking away.

Cobber sighed. "Cobber does not know if Team Battleryuu will make it through tournament. Battle with Korea Kim should not have been so long and challenging for Kyisha. If Kyisha does not want to go into tournament, Cobber understands. Battleryuu can still fight in Gangplank tournament for amateur. What does Kyisha think?"

Kyisha put her Pokemon back in their Pokeballs. "I want to continue in the tournament. Even if I lose, it'll be good experience." She looked up at the scoreboard, wondering if she could keep a perfect score going.

"I'll battle another person..."

Cobber nodded. "Kyisha is very determined. Cobber hopes you can do well in tournament."

"Wait," said the ant eater. "Before you have your next fight, let me examine your Pokemon." He took a small red device out of his jacket pocket.

Kyisha shrugged and held out her Pokeballs. The ant eater waved the device over them. He held up the device, squinting at a small built-in monitor. "That's bizarre. I've never seen readings like this before."

"What do you mean? Is that a good thing? Can I see that thing?"

"I'm not sure you'll get much out of it, miss. It's misreading the energy and the moves your Pokemon can do. It's barely even legible." He held the device out so Kyisha could see it.

"Make any sense to you?"

Kyisha stared at the screen and shrugged. "I guess it helps a little."

"The device was working fine this morning," he muttered.

"Monster at airport attack Kyisha's Pokemon," said Cobber. "Maybe it affect Pokemon?"

"Your guess is as good as mine. These aren't typical moves for these Pokemon, if I'm reading them correctly."

"I'm not sure what I can do about it," said Kyisha. "But I'm guessing exercise is good for their health. I'm going to train some more." She went over to the kiosk and picked someone. "I'll challenge Wolf Dago..."

The computer highlighted ring 5. She walked over to that ring, watching a guy in a mime costume battling Pokemon with a dark skinned Thai kid. One had an ultra cutesy pink critter with bunny ears, the other had a multi-colored Phoenix bird. The pink one started singing. The phoenix flapped down to the mat and sat there with its wings folded, head bobbing in drowsy forward nods. The mime stepped forward and slapped the bird, yelling something in French. The bird snapped out of its sleepy daze and flew into the air. Its beak opened and a burst of flame spewed forth. The pink creature caught flame like a marshmallow and fell over, screaming and kicking its feet. There was a wet popping sound, and there were bloody fried guts splattered all over the mat.

"You killed my Pokemon!" The Thai kid shouted. "That's not fair!"

The mime pretended to be inside a glass box.

"Illegal mod!" Someone in the audience cried. A large letter D appeared next to Lafayette's name.

The mime pretended to be holding an uzi and shooting everyone. He then opened a wine bottle and sucked his Pokemon inside it. He corked the bottle and stepped out of the ring, leaving the gym.

A raccoon in a black and white striped uniform threw a polka dotted Pokeball into the ring. Something like a catfish flopped out.

"Flounder! Splash attack!"

The catfish thing flopped around, glowed a bit, then a flood of water sprayed out from beneath its fins. The spray went all over the mat, rinsing the bloody guts off the surface. The ref put the fish back in the Pokeball and proceeded to wipe the mat clean with a towel.

Feeling nervous, Kyisha approached the ropes. "Is it okay if I get in now?"

"Proceed," the raccoon called.

Kyisha climbed over the ropes, stepping into the ring. She waited five minutes, but nobody showed up.

The raccoon pushed a button on a box situated on a table on one side of the ring, speaking into a microphone. His voice boomed on an intercom. "Wolf Dago to ring 5, please."

Kyisha looked around. No one stepped forward.

"Wolf Dago to ring 5."

Kyisha saw someone pushing their way through the crowd of spectators. A tall brown boy in a soccer uniform, carrying something like a collection of miniature soccer balls.

The boy climbed the ropes and stepped into the ring. He started speaking, but it was all in Portuguese, so Kyisha had no idea what he was saying. She just shrugged.

The boy stepped forward, offering his hand. She took it, and he started doing some odd five step handshake with her. After this, he stepped back, grabbed the soccer balls, and threw them on the mat. One of them rolled to the edge of the mat and fell off the side. The ant eater grabbed it and threw it back in.

The soccer balls swelled and expanded, the hexagonal surface bumps folding outwards on tiny posts. Three creatures rolled out. The first was a banana yellow creature resembling a brontosaurus with plant leaves growing out of it. Kyisha recognized it immediately as a Bayleef. The second thing that rolled out was silver. It had a pointy beak, chicken claws, knife wings and a blade for a tail. It looked more like a robot than an animal. And then there was something like a cross between an ogre and a pineapple or a coconut plant. It had three yellowish coconut-like heads with ugly faces, a body covered in a bumpy brown material resembling pineapple skin or the skin of a coconut tree, and something like giant pineapple leaves poking out its top.

Wolf Dago said something in Portuguese. Kyisha guessed that it had something to do with her bringing out her Pokemon.

Cupcake and the anteater sat down in the front row of folding chairs next to the ring. The bird promptly fell asleep.

A warthog in a polo shirt came up to the anteater, tapping him on the shoulder. "I'm willing to bet twenty pogs that Wolf Dago's going to win this fight."

"I don't gamble," said the anteater.

"I do," said a raspy voice behind him. "But why bet on a sure thing? Battle Ryyuu is an inexperienced fighter, and Wolf Dago is a title holder in the Brazilian nationals."

The warthog leaned over the chair. "Is there anyone here brave enough to place a bet in favor of Battle Ryuu?"

"I'll only wager ten," said a red panda in a chair behind Cupcake.

"Ten it is. Let's watch and see what happens."

The anteater shook his head.

Cobber leaned over the mat. "Kyisha is facing Bayleef, Skarmory and Exeggutor. Can Kyisha handle it?"

All right. I'll send out... "Go! Brale! Brute! Eni!"

She threw down the three Pokeballs. There was a flash, then her Ninetales, Bayleef and Arcanine appeared.

"Quick Attack! Tackle! Bite!" The second match has begun...

The vulpine Pokemon waved her multiple tails. The Arcanine barked. They both leapt at the shiny metal Skarmory.

With rapid suddenness, the robotic bird stepped out of the way, and the two Pokemon went flying into the ropes.

"Get them, #&%# *&!" Wolf Dago called.

Cupcake woke up, staring at the Brazilian. " #&%# *&? What kind of name is that?"

"People name these Pokemon anything anymore," said the anteater.

"Cobber hope Wolf Dago not planning to register with that name!"

The Skarmory flapped its metal wings, pecking at the dog Pokemon. Eni yelped in pain.

Kyisha's Ninetales turned around, snapping her tails back and forth. They turned purple. She snapped her tails again, and a shower of darts flew through the air. The darts bounced off the Skarmory and stuck in the mat.

Cobber's mouth fell open. "Kyisha's Ninetales do poison sting? Cobber not believing it!"

"Kyisha!" Cupcake shouted. "Next time tell them which Pokemon to attack! Skarmory is immune to poison!"

"Pineapple! Barrage attack!"

The odd pineapple plant creature swelled up to twice its body size, shaking violently. A split second later, hundreds of small coconuts were flying through the air, raining down on Eni's head. She yelped, running back and forth, trying to avoid the flying objects, but it was no use. Her fuzzy body was pelted again and again with coconuts.

The rain of coconuts stopped. Infuriated, Eni growled, digging her claws into the mat. She then relaxed, padding over to the Exeggutor. It placed its muzzle against the creature's head, giving it a sweet kiss.

The plant creature wobbled sideways, then shook back and forth. "Pine, Pine, Apple!" It stumbled towards the Skarmory. "Pine...Apple? Pine, Pine? Apple?"

"No!" Wolf Dago cried. "Stop it!"

The robotic bird squawked, giving the Pokemon a solid kick.

"Stop!"

Kyisha's quasi-saurian yellow plant beast pounced on the other Bayleef, knocking it backwards with a warbling cry. Wolf Dago's Bayleef shook itself off and stood up, crying, "Tea!"

"Bananasaur!" Wolf Dago shouted. "Razor leaf!"

The Bayleef hunched down, growling softly. A cloud of sharp, pointy leaves flew out of its body, filling the air around Brute. Brute cried as several of them dropped down, slashing her yellow flesh.

Kyisha clenched her fists with nervousness.

"Kyisha may still have a chance," said Cobber. "Kyisha has very unusual Pokemon."

"Pine...Apple!" the Exeggutor shouted, ramming its body into the Skarmory.

"Everyone! Same attacks!...Except for you, Eni! Don't do sweet kiss!" She paused. "Brale, don't do poison sting on Skarmory!"

Eni growled. Her mouth came open and a huge burst of flame shot out.

Bananasaur let out a shriek as it caught on fire. The referee took out a fire extinguisher, spraying the creature down. It was unconscious, but alive. Muttering something in Portuguese, Wolf Dago opened one of the soccer balls, sucking the Bayleef back inside. " #&# *&!" he yelled. "Sand attack!"

A series of panels opened on the side of the robotic bird's body, and an enormous shower of sand blew out. Brute shook his head, trying to clear his vision.

"Pineapple! Barrage!"

The Exeggutor spun around in a dizzy circle, swelled up, then shot a burst of coconuts at the Skarmory. The Skarmory let out a cry, flapping behind Wolf Dago. The Brazilian raised his hands as he too was pelted with coconuts. He yelled at the Pokemon until it stopped.

Brute leapt at the Skarmory, but missed his target.

Brale reared up and jumped at the Exeggutor, knocking it unconscious.

Wolf Dago didn't seem to be too upset about this particular loss. He put the Pokemon away with a sigh. " #&%# *&! Peck!"

The Skarmory flapped into the air, diving at Brale. She yelped and jumped back.

"C'mon, guys! You can do it!" Kyisha shouted. "Go!"

Brute shook a bit, then leapt at #&%# *&. He went rolling under the ropes, dropping off the side of the ring with a thud.

"Brute!" Kyisha hurried to the side of the ring, looking down. "Brute?"


	6. Chapter 6: The Stolen Suitcase

The Bayleef was on the floor, unhurt. It shook itself and climbed back into the ring. Kyisha sighed in relief.

Brale crouched down, digging her claws into the mat. She began glowing. A field of green light grew around her. A beam shot out of her head, striking the Skarmory on the chrome skull.

Kyisha stared at her. "What was that? A psychic attack?"

"Cobber does not think Skarmory can be affected by that."

The Skarmory shrugged, then leapt at Brute.

"Brute!" the Bayleef cried, falling sideways.

Brale charged at the Skarmory, clawing at its metal frame. The #&0cussword0%# *& dodged the attack.

"Brute! Eni! Brale! Attack the Skarmory!"

Kyisha's three pets commenced their attack.

Brale stepped forward, buried its claws into the mat, and a blue beam of light shot out from its forehead. It seemed its psychic attack was operating properly for once, but the Skarmory was not affected.

The Arcanine jumped at the Skarmory, knocking it down. The robotic bird did not get back up. Wolf Dago put it back in one of his Pokeballs. He sighed, approached Kyisha, and gave her a firm handshake. He then climbed out of the ring and walked out of the gym.

"Yaay!" Cobber cried. "Good job, Kyisha!"

The lights went out.

"What was that?"

Kyisha looked around the darkened gym.

"Did someone forget to pay the power bill?"

"Ow! Hey!"

There were sounds of a scuffle, and chairs clattering to the floor.

The lights came back on.

Kyisha saw the red panda holding the warthog in a headlock, giving him a solid pounding. "Stay out of my pockets, you greedy thief!"

"But my hands weren't in your pockets! That was someone else!"

"Likely story!" The red panda hit the warthog in the head, knocking him to the floor. "I won those ten dollars fair and square, and I'm keeping them!" The critter walked out of the room.

"My briefcase! It's gone!"

Kyisha looked over the side of the ring and saw a short bald man in a labcoat. There was a worried expression behind his large glasses. He paced the room, searching around chairs and rings. He came up to Cobber and said, "Excuse me, Miss, have you seen my briefcase?"

Cobber frowned. "I am not Miss, I am Cobber. Where does man be seeing briefcase before?"

"I just had it! It was in my hand! I fear someone stole it!"

"Can man be describing what briefcase is looking like?"

"Well, it was black, leather, with a Pokecube embossed on it."

Cobber sighed. "Cobber is sorry. Cobber has not seen anything like short man's briefcase. But Cobber will be looking and Cobber will be letting man know if Cobber is finding anything."

"Thank you," said the short man. "I would truly appreciate it. My name is Professor Bubbles." He dug in his pocket, taking out a small square of paperboard. "Here is my card. Give me a call or an instant message if you see anything."

Cobber nodded. "Cobber will do!...May Cobber ask what was in briefcase?"

Professor Bubbles nodded. "I am not permitted to discuss the particulars, but the briefcase contained highly classified documents and computer files concerning a recent development in Pokemon research. I would appreciate it if you would return that briefcase to my office if you find it." He then went about searching the gym again.

The labcoated figure took out a small device from his pocket, waving it around. It started making beeping sounds when he pointed it at Kyisha. "I knew it. There is something unusual about your Pokemon. I have seen this type of phenomenon before. I came into this gym for the express purpose of studying them and delivering my findings to the Pokemon board." He sighed. "But first we must find that briefcase before something terrible happens."

Kyisha nodded. "I'll help you. But first, do you know of anyone who would want to steal your briefcase?" She returned her Pokemon to their Pokeballs, keeping Eni out. "Or anyone who tried getting the information out of you?"

Professor Bubbles shrugged. "It could be anyone. This is a busy gym. I only brought my briefcase in here because the gym is on the way to the lab. I wanted to take a break from my work and watch a few fights. It was a mistake. Some thug probably thought it contained money or something." He sat down on a chair, staring at the floor. "What to do? What to do? If it ends up in the wrong hands, the information contained in that briefcase could demolish an entire country!" He buried his face in his hands. "What to do?"


	7. Chapter 7: Junior Detective

Kyisha stared at the room, pondering where the suitcase may have been taken.

"Hmm...Isn't there a security camera in here? It might've caught something on it..." She said, putting her hand on her chin.

"That's a brilliant idea!" said Professor Bubbles. "Indeed there is a security camera!" He stood up. "C'mon. Let's go see security."

The professor left the battle area, heading down the tunnel. Kyisha and Cobber followed him. He stopped at a door a few feet from the workout room, knocking on the door.

A fat security officer opened it. He wore a name badge that read Pincer. "Can I help you with something?"

"Yes," said the professor. "My suitcase was stolen. I need to look at the tape to see who took it."

Pincer shrugged. "How long ago was it stolen?"

"Just a few minutes ago."

Pincer led them into a small, dumpy looking office. He had a pile of papers on one side, a ring of keys, and a coffee machine. On the other side was a set of small television monitors with joysticks on the bottom. It displayed scenes from the outer lobby, the outside of the building, the weight room, the battle area, the storage rooms, and an area near the back doors. Pincer rewound the tape. The monitor on the bottom right showed a mob of creatures surrounding a stage. The screen went black a minute, then the creatures were milling around again. Flashes of light came out of the rings.

"Stop. It happened before the lights went out," said the professor.

Pincer pushed a button and the footage slowed down. The professor and Kyisha leaned over the monitor, staring at the crowd. It was difficult to see what was going on, on account of the people being so small. Pincer put the image on a larger monitor and they squinted at the footage again.

About five minutes before the screen went black, a tall figure in a widebrim hat and a trenchcoat came around one of the rings. The footage flickered for a brief second, and then the figure was standing behind the professor. The lights went out.

"Could you rewind it again?" said Kyisha.

Pincer did.

Kyisha pointed to the trenchcoat. "Who's that?"

"I don't know," said the professor.

"Well he's the one who took it. If only we knew who he was."

The camera footage continued on. The trenchcoated figure appeared in the hallway with the briefcase in its hand. All the monitors flickered, then the figure was outside the rear door of the gym. It stepped in a puddle of dumpster slime, then walked off the screen.

Kyisha pointed to him. "Look!"

"Yeah, it looks like he's making off with the suitcase," said the professor.

Pincer shrugged. "Where he went from there is anyone's guess.

"At any rate, it's too late for us to do anything about it." The professor sighed. "We're all doomed."

"Ah...now is where we go where he left. See if there's anything that'd indicate where he was headed." Speaking calmly, she added, "And one more thing Professor, negativity will get you nowhere."

"Man went out back entrance," said Cobber. "Cobber think we should check there."

"I'll unlock the back if you want to go out there," said Officer Pincer.

Kyisha nodded. They walked out of the security office, going into a room full of exercise equipment. Pincer followed them, jingling the key ring.

The door was unlocked. They went outside.

The back entrance was a dumpy, dirty place. It smelled strongly of garbage because of the dumpster to the right of the double doors. The blacktop was crumbling, and there were puddles of slime everywhere. Finding a piece of black fabric stuck to the door, Kyisha pocketed it. She stared at the ground. She saw bits of trash, soda can tabs, and bits of grass poking out through the asphalt. The asphalt stopped in front of a short green hill. She found a matchbook there. Its cover said `The Black Lotus.' There was a phone number on the inside. She put it in her pocket. A few feet from that, someone had stepped on a dog turd. A clear impression of a shoe could be seen in the coffee colored ooze. There was a pencil with teeth marks on it lying next to the dumpster. On the ground to the left of the door was a scrap of paper. It was a flier for a rock band called `Wreckwood.' The concert apparently would be held the next day. Holding her breath, she opened the lid of the garbage can. Several trash bags were in it. It would probably take all day to go through it.

She shook her head. "I watch too much CSI."

Cobber searched the ground. "Cobber doesn't think that thief went to Wreckwood concert. Cobber also thinks that man didn't open garbage can. Cobber thinks Kyisha should look at other clues."

She nodded stiffly and dug the matchbook out. She looked through it just in case anything else was on it other than that number.

"We should try to call this number, to see if anyone comes up..." she murmured.

Cobber scratched his head. "Maybe Kyisha can try. Cobber not have phone."

"Here," said the professor. "Use my cel." He took a small red-white thing out of his pocket, handing it to her.

Kyisha dialed the number.

"Who's this?" said an African sounding voice on the other end. "Hello?"

"A-hello..." she mimicked in a low voice, similar to that of a man's, "W-what was the plan again?" She had a nervous look on her face, but tried anyway.

"Well," the voice said, smacking gum. "I was thinkin' we could go out to the movies or something, if you're still up to doin' that. If not, well, you know, we could probably rent something." Smack, smack.

"Um..." Kyisha stammered, trying to think of what to say next.

"Shoot, you sound kinda (smack, smack) nervous or something. What's been goin' on, Tony? You feelin' all right? I know you were down with that cold last week, so I don't blame you for not callin'. Shoot, I didn't mean to give you those cold sores, either. That was an honest mistake, and I am taking medication." Smack, smack, smack. "If you don't wanna kiss, that's fine. I understand completely."

Kyisha made a face and hung up. She stared at the matchbook.

"Well?" said the professor.

"I...I don't think that was a helpful lead."

The professor shrugged. "I didn't actually see him smoke or even walk in that direction. Not every clue is directly related to the person you want...or even indirectly." He dug a small canister out of his pocket. "But I do think I saw him step in dumpster slime." He bent over, spraying a patch of the stuff. He went over to the dog doo, spraying that as well. He took out a digital camera, snapping pictures. He used a tape measure to estimate shoe size.

"If you want to find clues, you can't be afraid to get your hands dirty," he muttered. "It looks like we're searching for a guy with size fourteen shoes."

He picked up a piece of fabric stuck on the back door. He took a small silver device out of his pocket, sticking the cloth inside it. It beeped for a minute. He squinted at it. "He shops at Mondas, most likely." He bent over the grass. "Let's see how far we can track his steps."

He sprayed the grass around the dog mess, creating a pattern of red droplets leading northwest. He sprayed some more in that general area.

Kyisha followed him as he sprayed his way up to a sidewalk.

"He scuffed his feet to get the crap off his shoes." He squinted at the pavement. "And it looks like someone wasn't looking where they were going and bumped into him. There's soda everywhere." He paused. "Unfortunately, that's as much information as I can get. There's too much foot traffic around here."

Cobber waddled up to him. "Cobber wonder if person who spill drink went to bathroom to clean up."

The professor shrugged. "It's no use. We were busy watching a security camera and poking around for clues during that time, so there's no way we can tell where he went from here without asking the entire campus to give us tongue swabs."

"Unless man have wet shirt."

"Yes. Unless-what?"

Cobber pointed to a young Asian man with a black suitcase coming out of a nearby art building. The man was dressed in business attire. A tie, black slacks and a rumpled, slightly soaked white dress shirt.

"Is that your suitcase?" Kyisha asked.

The professor shook his head. "You sir!" he called, running to the man. "Did you bump into a man with a black coat?"

The man blinked. "Actually, yes. I was on my cel phone and he was in the way."

"Did you see where he went?"

The man shrugged. "Hell if I know. I was too busy thinking about how to clean that pop off my shirt and my cel phone." He sighed. "I think I'm going to need a new phone. That was a pretty bad drop."

"Did you remember anything about what the guy looked like at all? Anything that stands out in your memory?"

The man paused. "Well, I did knock his hat off. He had black hair, I think. Black or brown. It was a dark color. It looked like he had a scarf over his face. He got real angry when I made a mess on his clothes. I..." His eyes got a faraway look.

"Something wrong?"

"Sorry, what?"

"Never mind."

"You know, I think when the man bumped into me, he may have gone that way." He waved in the general direction toward the street away from the Pokemon center. "But that's only because he pushed past me that way while I was inspecting my phone for damage." He paused. "But he may have gone that way, too." He gestured to the area to the right of the sidewalk. "I'm sorry. My memory isn't that good."

The professor frowned. "Thank you, sir. Much appreciated."

The man walked away.

"What does professor think?"

"We could check the bathrooms, but there's one in every building on this block, and he's probably gone by now anyway."

"Cobber Dobber!" Cobber cursed, putting his hands on his hips.

"I suppose we could go to Mondas and see if they know anything, but that's a busy store." The professor scratched his head. "Well, since that's the best lead we've got, I'll be going there to see what clues I can turn up. Does anyone want to come with me?"

"Here. How 'bout you two check out this shop, Mondas, and I'll check the Pokemon center. By the way, I think this guy's name is Tony, so...I'll check the center and meet you at Mondas." She paused. "And hopefully I don't get lost," she added quietly.

"Right," said the professor. He dug out a card, handing it to her. "If you find anything, my number is (X)4111-3412."

Kyisha nodded, staring at the card.

"Will Kyisha be okay?" Cobber asked.

"Yeah. I'll be fine."

"Cobber," the creature shrugged.

They walked on toward the Pokemon center, then split up, Cobber and the professor heading to the parking lot, Kyisha heading into the building. She pushed through the doors, looking around.

She saw a copy center, a set of tables along a wall, where someone had set up a convention registration, and an information desk. Hallways led to the left and right. She approached the desk. A young Chinese girl sat behind the counter, reading a book on Calculus. Kyisha noticed that she he had a ring with a swirling insignia on her left hand.

"Um, hello?"

The girl looked up. "Can I help you?"

"Yes, do you know someone-"

The girl nodded.

"Tony?"

She gave Kyisha a blank look.

"You...know...Tony?"

The girl shook her head.

Kyisha frowned. She went up to the group of people in suits behind the registration tables. "Do you know anyone named Tony?"

A lady looked on the roster. "What's his last name?"

Kyisha shrugged. "I don't know."

"Then I'm afraid I can't help you."

Kyisha looked around for someone else to ask. She went around the wall and found a lounge where a number of young kids and animals were studying. There was a thin blonde girl in designer clothing, a goth girl dressed in black, a Japanese boy in a striped shirt, and some other strange individuals. Behind them she could see a staircase leading down.

"Does anyone know someone named Tony?" she asked them.

"Tony Brown is in my physics class," said an orangutan.

"I know a Tony Jones," said the blonde.

"What's his last name?" said the goth.

Kyisha paused. "Um, has anyone seen a guy in a black trenchcoat and a hat, maybe a guy with brown or black hair?"

The goth girl shrugged. "I don't know about a hat, but I know several guys who wear black trenchcoats."

Kyisha stared at her with interest.

"They really rock out."

Kyisha shook her head.

"Wait," said the Japanese boy. "I saw that dude. I pissed him off yesterday and he hit me in the head. It's still healing." He pointed to his forehead.

Kyisha came closer, staring at him. There was an indentation of a swirling insignia on his skin. "Ouch."

A door at the end of the room came open. A winged cherub came floating in, gripping a golden harp in its baby fingers. It began playing music. "La la la!"

It then reached into a quiver on its back, drawing out an arrow tipped with a heart shaped arrowhead. It nocked the arrow, aimed and fired at the goth girl. She reeled backwards a minute, then blinked several times, staring straight ahead at the orangutan. She tilted her head. "Wow! You're kinda cute!"

The orangutan looked nervous.

The cherub went back to playing the harp. "La la la!"

Kyisha laughed, staring at the cherub. She returned her focus to what she was originally doing. "Do you remember what the man did after he...hit you?"

The boy shrugged. "Not really. All I know is that it hurt really bad. That ring he wore, it was heated or something, and it really burned."

"I think he went up the sidewalk out back or something," said the goth girl. "But that was at least ten minutes ago."

Ten minutes. This must have happened before the suitcase got stolen, Kyisha thought, staring at the symbol burned in the boy's forehead. _Now why does that symbol look familiar?_ She scratched her head.

After a minute's thought, she recalled that the lady at the desk was wearing a ring with the same symbol on it.

She walked over to the desk where the lady was at. "Excuse me, but what does that symbol on your ring mean?" She politely asked. I hope she says something helpful...

The clerk looked nervous and uncomfortable. "It...it mean nothing. Nothing." She took a deep breath and said, "This ring was given to me by a friend."

The statement sounded memorized. Looking around with nervousness, she gave the symbol on the ring a slight twist, then covered it with her hand.

Cupcake stepped into the room. "Did you find anything yet, er, what's your name?"

"Kyisha."

"Kyisha. Did you find anything yet?"

"La la la!" The cherub floated into the room. An arrow whipped past Kyisha's head, shattering a nearby television monitor.

Kyisha sighed. "Yeah, but I'd need to look into it a little more...Maybe on the Internet or some helpful resource...And I seem to be a target of a love arrow..."

"Oh." Cupcake stared at the floating creature. "Those are so annoying!"

The cherub laughed and drifted down the hallway to the right.

Kyisha sighed in relief.

She glanced at the bird. "Are there computers with internet access around here?"

Cupcake shrugged. "Yeah, but you need a student ID to log into them." She took a black phone out of her pocket. "Maybe the professor can give us his ID and password or something." She pushed some buttons and waited a bit. "Hi. It's me, Cupcake. Did you find any clues about the briefcase yet?" She paused. "Really." Pause. "Uh huh. Right."

Kyisha heard a shout. She walked across the room to investigate.

The cherub had struck a young redhead boy. He had freckles and messy unkempt hair. He wore baggy black denim pants, chains, and a Wreckwood t-shirt.

His green eyes met her blue through a pair of nearsightedness glasses. His mouth fell open.

He ran to Kyisha, shaking her hand. "Hi! I'm Pete. You're beautiful. What's your name?"

Kyisha reddened. "Kyisha?"

"Kyisha!" he breathed. "The name is like music! I...I must tell you that I love you!"


End file.
